The start of our School Year, 2023-2024, has us all launching a great year of learning! Individual educators, schools, districts, and organizations across Georgia have begun learning with MRESA through our Endorsement Programs. As September begins, more than 80 cohorts of educators will be participating in one or more of our 12 (Twelve) endorsement programs. (Explore Endorsement Programs at MRESA) Many Metro RESA programs provide learning opportunities that will strengthen your knowledge, skillset, and disposition toward a specific content area or teacher leader service area.

www.mresa.org.

Please reach out to our Endorsement Program Coordinators regarding a learning opportunity that will support your professional goals. You will find Endorsement Coordinator contact information at the website link above aligned to each of our twelve endorsement programs. We hope you come and learn with us!

Are you a district-level leader looking to connect with others in similar roles? Look no further than Metro RESA Job-Alike groups. 2023-2024 schedules are being updated daily on the Metro RESA website. Join one of our groups today to enhance your role-relevant knowledge, network with others, and share information to meet the needs of your particular role. Find the Job-Alike group that is a good fit for you.

Registration is Closing Soon! Click Here to Register Today.

Metro RESA is proud to offer a six-month, in-person academy created for both new and experienced instructional coaches led by expert leaders in the field.

The Metro RESA Coaching Connections Academy is a focused, engaging, and intensive professional development opportunity available to Metro Atlanta instructional coaches that will begin in the Fall of 2023. The academy aims to provide a big-picture view of instructional coaching, while still diving in deep to develop crucial skills and strategies instructional coaches need to know to become successful coaching partners with the educators and students they serve. Each session will leave participants with the tools and resources needed to successfully implement in their respective learning communities upon their return. For more information about each individual meeting session, click the link to see more details.

Metro RESA ELA

The Metro RESA English Language Arts Professional Learning Specialists are working diligently to provide our Metro area educators and leaders of English Language Arts with the most up-to-date professional learning opportunities. Please review our PL Opportunities Guide for more information.

Use the Metro RESA Course Catalog to register today!

Metro RESA Mathematics

The Mathematics Diving Deeper Series sessions will continue the journey of professional learning for Georgia’s K-12 Math Standards. Participants will dive into the content that is addressed in units 3 and 4 by exploring grade level/course resources as they unpack the units of instruction. Emphasis will be placed on diving deep into learning plans to better understand the shift toward a key competency approach.

K-5 Registration Flyer

6-12 Registration Flyer

Location: Metro RESA Auditorium Cost: $99 per session

MRESA Mathematics PL

• Elementary Mathematics PL Opportunities Guide
• Secondary Mathematics PL Opportunities Guide

Use the Metro RESA Course Catalog to register today!

Ami Dean Behavior Learning Series

Join Metro RESA as we host Amie Dean, The Behavior Queen. Amie has a passion for helping students and teachers across the world. Her behavior-focused workshops offer right on time strategies to minimize and process behaviors in the classroom successfully. Leave the workshop ready to implement positive and practical strategies that can be used right away.

Use the Metro RESA Course Catalog to register today!

• October 13, 2023: Behavior Interventions That Work
• December 4, 2023: Correcting Problems Now
• February 2, 2024: Behavior Interventions That Work
• February 26, 2024: Better Next Year: Planning for the First Six Weeks of School
• May 7, 2024: Behavior Interventions That Work- Morning Session Focus on Paraprofessional Needs, Afternoon Session Focus on Substitute Needs

Metro RESA is committed to supporting mental health awareness training for school staff and is pleased to announce that once again we will be offering Staff Mental Health Awareness Mini-Grants for the 23-24 school year. We are inviting applications from individual schools in Metro RESA’s service delivery region seeking to enhance staff awareness and their understanding of mental health and behavioral health needs in order to more effectively address those needs and improve educational outcomes. We will award a select number of grants for actions that can be accomplished in the 23/24 school year. Grant awards for school projects will be a maximum of $5,000 each. Applications must be submitted online by 11:59 pm on September 21, 2023. Please share this opportunity with your schools. Here is what you need to apply:

• Link to the MHA Grant Application
• Copy of the Webinar Recording (A webinar was held 8/22 where the nuts and bolts of a successful grant application were shared. It recommended those applying listen to this webinar before applying).

School Grant Candidates Folder (includes all documents you will need)

• Mental Health Awareness Grant Narrative (a must read!)
• Budget Sheet
• Grant Project Timeline
• Grant Scoring Rubric
• Information Session PPT
• Information Session Recording

If you have any questions as you move through the application process, please do not hesitate to contact Granville Freeman, Metro RESA Mental Health Coordinator at Granville.Freeman@mresa.org

Come learn with us!

• Renew! Tier II Individual Booster - 9/26
• Restorative Practices - 10/5 and 10/12 (2 day training)
• 10 Steps to Being a Trauma-Informed and Resilient School - (10/16 and 10/17) - 2 day training
• Youth Mental Health First Aid - 10/18
• Check and Connect: Prep and Implementation - 10/20
• Mental Health Lunch and Learn - 10/26

The Metro RESA Whole Child Supports Team, supports schools and school districts in building their capacity to identify and address student non-academic barriers to success, while expanding learning opportunities. Our team of Wraparound Services Coordinators bring a vast array of knowledge and experiences to best support schools and districts. The Metro RESA Whole Child Supports Team will assist in the building of professional growth, awareness, and knowledge of whole child support initiatives for all stakeholders.

MRESA Whole Child Supports Professional Learning Offerings

The Metro RESA School Climate Specialists (SCSs) support schools and school districts in building their capacity to create and sustain positive, responsive, and effective learning environments that engage all students, families, and staff. SCSs will assist schools as they implement evidence-based models like Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), and Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) to establish positive school climate in schools.

MRESA School Climate Professional Learning Offerings

Thank you for attending the August 15th Virtual Curriculum Summit with Metro RESA and GaDOE. If you were unable to attend, or attended and need additional resources, visit the resource repository for all presentation materials.

Are you interested in learning to teach completely online or in a hybrid model? The Online Teaching Endorsement covers the pedagogy, tools and strategies needed for teaching in an online environment. We would love to have you join our next cohort, beginning January 24.

We will meet online, Thursday evenings from 7:00 - 8:30 PM. The endorsement consists of 3 courses, each lasting 10 weeks. Successful completion will add the Online Teaching Endorsement to your current Georgia teaching certificate. Registration is currently open!

For more information, visit Metro RESA Online Teaching Endorsement resource page or contact Wendy Grey at wendy.grey@mresa.org. We look forward to learning with you!

Metro RESA is proud to offer a new online cohort for the K-5 Science Endorsement. Registration for the new cohort will open on September 15th, 2023.

Please visit the MRESA K-5 Science Endorsement webpage for more information. Email reagan.biwott@mresa.org with any questions.

Grant funding will soon be available for the Metro RESA Dyslexia Endorsement. The grant will be offered to qualified applicants who meet the criteria below. For more information visit the Metro RESA Dyslexia Endorsement resource page. If you meet the criteria listed below and are interested in applying for the grant funding in October, please fill out the Metro RESA Dyslexia Endorsement Grant Funding Interest Form.

-School-Based or District-Based MTSS Coordinators

-A valid Georgia Teaching Certificate

-At least 3 years of teaching experience

-At least 3 years of intervention experience

-At least 2 years of coaching experience

As you prepare to apply in October, make sure to gather your resume and cover letter, along with a copy of your Georgia Teaching Certificate when applying for the grant funding. Applications will not be accepted until October 1, 2023.

The Educator Support and Development Division has created an additional TKES and LKES Initial Credentialing virtual session, for new administrators that did not have an opportunity to be credentialled earlier in the year. You will find the registration links below:

TKES Initial Credentialing Training - GaDOE Community

LKES Initial Credentialing Training - GaDOE Community

In addition, to better accommodate districts, the GaDOE team will be hosting virtual Train-the-Trainer sessions that allow local representatives to offer TKES and LKES credentialing to district staff. Leaders who attend these sessions must be currently credentialed in TKES and LKES to be a certified trainer. Links to register for our virtual Train-the-Trainer sessions are found below:

• September 12, 2023 from 8:30 AM to Noon
• September 14, 2023 from Noon to 3:30 PM

Novice special education teachers within Clayton County, Douglas County and Marietta City Schools embarked this week on a year-long journey of learning about High Leverage Practices. Participants in this program will receive coaching as well as opportunities to practice their specially designed instruction in KSU’s Avatar Lab. This collaborative project is focused on retaining special education teachers in the Georgia public school systems. Metro West GLRS is proud to link arms with the GADOE, CEEDER Center and KSU to provide excellent support for these new educators!

Clayton Picture, Douglas Picture, Marietta City Picture, High Leverage Practices Picture

On August 16, 2023 Marietta City Schools kicked off their dyslexia endorsement cohorts. Dr. Jennifer Hernandez has partnered with Metro RESA to facilitate our hybrid model of the endorsement

Meet the Instructional Coaches, Regina Hayman (Rutgers University/MRESA Endorsed) and Kristen McNeil (Spelman College). As we kick off the 23-24 school year, these two coaches exemplify unwavering dedication, a wealth of professional knowledge, and a sincere commitment to the success of Gideons little geniuses. They have ‘hit the ground running’ by facilitating data driven collaborative planning that is unique for each grade level. The Gideons family is excited for this coming year and the imminent progress gains with ongoing support from GaDOE and MRESA.

When Principal Forrestella Taylor of Frederick Douglass HS (Atlanta Public Schools) was appointed, she knew what she was taking on, and she was ready. Douglass High School was already a State Identified CSI school for low graduation rates, but there were also significant issues with content mastery and the climate and culture among students and some staff was not conducive to moving in a positive direction. A little over two years later, the ship is starting to turn, and preliminary data from the 2023 school year looks good enough that the graduation rate will have risen enough for them to exit the list. So how did this happen? In her first year, Principal Taylor and her team established clear behavioral guidelines for students and staff and built a climate where learning has a chance to flourish. She instituted a Freshman Academy where all incoming 9th graders attend classes in a building separate from the main campus. A huge benefit from this one change is that 9th grade retention dropped from 150 students per year to just 40 in 2023. Principal Taylor is most pleased about the reduction in the number of infractions, which has been reduced by 287 students. She attributes this success to "providing one-to-one mentorship, implementing restorative practices, providing students with a nurturing, smaller learning environment and utilizing personalized learning. Also, students received wrap around services from staff members dedicated solely to the 9th grade students.” Working with her MRESA and GaDOE partners, the PLC process has been improved and her API along with academic coaches are leading the teachers through a solid process of clarifying the standards, implementing instructional frameworks, using Common Formative Assessments, and using the data to inform future lessons. In addition, a rigorous process of monitoring the progress of members of the senior cohort toward graduation has resulted in a preliminary Graduation Rate of 70%, a full 3 percentage points above the required amount. The Leadership Team knows the importance of establishing solid processes and procedures to make lasting change. With the assistance of their partners from RESA and GaDOE, a foundation is being established that should hold Frederick Douglass HS in good stead for the years to come. Congratulations, and keep up the good work!

Cross Keys High School (Dekalb County School District) is truly a diamond in the rough. The current Principal is beginning her third year at the helm of a school that has been an identified CSI school for low graduation rates for the past 5 years. So why do we say the school is a ‘Diamond in the Rough’? First, the “rough part”. Cross Keys has one of the largest ELL populations in the state of Georgia, creating challenges for teaching rigorous HS content with a highly mobile student population where English is not their first language. COVID hit the Cross Keys community especially hard as students did not have regular access to technology, broadband, or even a location where they could attend virtual classes. The school is bursting at the seams due to increasing enrollments. The dropout rate between 9th and 10th grade is as high as 20%, making a 4-year cohort rate of 67% seem almost unattainable, yet there is a solid plan in place to implement changes that in the long term will yield improved learning and ultimately graduates. Working with their MRESA and GaDOE partners, staff at the school have implemented a PLC process that has resulted in substantial improvement in Content Mastery in 3 of 4 EOC tested content areas. Students scoring developing or better in 10th Grade lit improved from 53.8% in 2021-22 to 62.4% (preliminary results) in 2022-23. For US History it was 59.9% to 66.2%, and for Biology it was 54.7% to 66%. Coordinate Algebra was the only content area that declined, dropping from 47.3% to 45.7%. Administrators regularly work with the academic coaches to help teachers build lessons linked to the standards, and CFAs are administered bi-weekly to monitor progress. Last year, to address the large dropout rate between 9th and 10th grade, administrators and guidance counselors began tracking the 9th grade cohort in a similar manner as they were already tracking their seniors. By spotting problems early in a students’ HS experience, they believe they can keep more students on course. There is a lot of work to do, and the challenges are many, but the Principal and her staff are doing the necessary work to ensure all students at Cross Keys HS have the opportunity to succeed. With enough pressure, and time, the Diamond will come through!

2023-2024 Young Georgia Authors (YGA) Competition Guidelines

The purpose of the Young Georgia Authors (YGA) writing competition is to encourage students to develop enthusiasm for and expertise in their writing, to provide a context to celebrate their writing successes, and to recognize student achievement in arts and academics. This prestigious competition has been engaging Georgia students for more than two decades and is open to any student currently enrolled in Georgia public schools, grades K -12. The competition is sponsored by the Georgia Language Arts Supervisors (GLAS) and the Georgia RESA Network with support from the Georgia Department of Education. Winning entries from each system are due to the Metro RESA ELA Supervisor, Kelley York, no later than 5:00 p.m. on February 16, 2024. Kelley York will send specific instructions to upload entries. Please email kelley.york@mresa.org for more information.

Official Rules Booklet

Our Metro RESA specialists want to keep you informed. Receive the latest updates in ELA, Mathematics, Science, School Climate, and Whole Child Support. Head to our catalog and search "mailing" and you can register for one, or all!

K5 ELA

Secondary ELA

K5 Math

Secondary Math

K5 Science

Secondary Science

School Climate

Whole Child Support